PEDAL ON PARLIAMENT 2014

On the 26th of April I joined thousands of other cyclists in Edinburgh for Pedal on Parliament – an event to highlight the benefits of cycling and to put pressure on the Scottish Government to prioritise making Scotland a safer place to cycle. People of all age groups attended the event, with organisers estimating a higher turnout than the 4000 that attended last year.

The Pedal on Parliament campaign has an eight point manifesto: 1) proper funding for cycling; 2) cycling to be designed into Scotland’s roads; 3) slower speeds where people live, work and play; 4) cycling to be integrated into local transport strategies; 5) improved road traffic law and enforcement; 6) the risk of HGVs to cyclists and pedestrians to be reduced; 7) a strategic and joined-up programme of road user training; and 8) improved statistics supporting decision-making and policy.

For more information on the Pedal on Parliament, visit their website: http://pedalonparliament.org/. All of these points, when achieved, will propel Scotland towards being a safer, greener, cycle-friendly nation.

Cycling has many benefits, and it would be great to see more people in Edinburgh taking up cycling. One of the most effective ways to encourage people to do this is to make Edinburgh, and Scotland generally, more cycle-friendly. It’s a healthy, cheap and fun way to journey to work or school, or to explore and discover places within and outside of Edinburgh. This needs to be done in the safest and most inclusive way possible, which is what the Peddle on Parliament campaign aims to achieve.